Purdue University is home to some 40,000 students from around the world. Of those students no more than 40 at a time are Reformed Presbyterian students, and often the numbers are much smaller. While the RP church is no stranger to being the “little guy”—and the Lafayette, Ind., RPC is not alone in having the blessing of being next door to a university—we must ask, How can the church take advantage of such a mission field? And how does the Reformed church minister to secular college students?
Isn’t College Ministry a Full-Time Job?
Pastor Dave Long once told me during a very busy week, “I’m not a campus minister. If I’m not careful, that could fill my entire schedule.”
Pastors and elders must prioritize the local flock of God (Acts 20:28). But as we shepherd college students who are part of the local flock in the Lafayette church, we also seek to foster ministry on Purdue’s campus through the students themselves.
What makes Purdue CORPS different from other campus ministries?
The Lafayette RPC and the Immanuel (West Lafayette, Ind.) RPC (both near Purdue’s campus) are continually blessed with students from around the denomination. In addition to RP students, others interested in a Reformed campus ministry have also regularly joined Purdue Collegiate Organization of RP Students (CORPS). We desire the students to take personal ownership over this ministry—instead of merely attending events like a bystander. It is also expected that participants in CORPS will attend one of the two local churches and will serve the church as any attendee or member would.
This commitment to being part of the local church sets CORPS apart from the myriad other parachurch and campus ministries at Purdue. Christ’s promises are given to His bride, the Church, and to no other. And the Church is uniquely equipped to provide students with the spiritual footing necessary in navigating this time in their lives.
College is more than training for a career
People rightly see college as preparation for a career, and they typically attend with clear academic goals. How many students head off to college with clear spiritual goals, in hopes of growing in Christ more than growing their resume? The years in college should be a training ground for what it means to be a healthy Christian.
We want to make sure our students leave Purdue with a vision for serving the local church wherever the Lord may place them. During their four years in the Lafayette area, we offer our students times of fellowship, hospitality, involvement in local church ministries, teaching, and biblical or topical studies particularly for them. We are not just feeding the students spiritually; we want to equip them with the skills to evangelize, to engage the unchurched in outreach, and to assist in seeing their fellow students grow into healthy, active church members.
A major in Christian Living, with a minor in Christian Maturity
To implement such a vision, it cannot be assumed that students know how to engage others with thoughtful questions or how to lead conversations toward spiritual matters. It cannot be assumed that these young adults have shared the gospel with an unbeliever—or even know where to begin. Therefore, in Purdue CORPS, we aim to train them to engage unchurched friends and acquaintances on campus.
Then they put their developing abilities into practice. Typically, the students will take part in weekly evangelism on Purdue’s campus. This is not only a training ground for such conversations and activity, but a way to see actual fruit: conversions. Even if the full harvesting of souls is not the result, interest in attending church or a CORPS event are other fruits of our students’ labors.
Other ways we have fostered students engaging their unbelieving campus in the past is by holding a Christianity Explored seminar, led by a student under care of our session and presbytery. We have also invited any interested persons on campus to student-led discussions about the Bible or to midweek studies.
What do you expect out of Christian College Students?
The reason such efforts go into training these young people and fostering active Christian engagement of their university, is that we expect them to labor for Christ in their particular context. Oftentimes young people are made to feel like they have to grow up before they can be an active part of the church. Or that they have to “become adults” before they can serve Christ completely. This is a false notion.
What is expected of adults in the workforce is expected of young adults in college: laboring for Christ in their respective contexts. Pastors preach and teach that the congregation ought to live out their faith, answer those “who ask you a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Pet. 3:15), and invite people to church—this includes college students. Just as pastors do not preach to the congregation without equipping the saints to fulfill their God-given responsibilities, so too, we are aiming to be deliberate about giving students the skills necessary to fulfill their Christian duties.
What, then, is our goal?
The Lafayette RP Church desires to faithfully minister to the university next door. We anticipate having unchurched, secular college students attend worship with us because they have been invited by their friends, classmates, roommates, or acquaintances on campus. We hope and pray they will hear the gospel proclaimed and be converted by the power of the Holy Spirit through the public means of grace. We expect them to see the gospel impact our students’ lives and to see a clear contrast to their own.
We could not do any of the above effectively if our students sat back and expected the leadership of the church to do all of the heavy lifting. Just as a pastor cannot go into every secular workplace in the surrounding community to personally minister to unchurched working adults, so too, a pastor cannot give his time to personally minister to the many unchurched college students. But as congregants are trained and equipped to engage others for Christ, the church has far greater reach into the surrounding neighborhoods, places of work, and schools.
Since college-aged young adults are typically ready to learn and eager to embark on the next phase of life, why would we not capitalize on their vigor and drive? Nevertheless, it would be unfair to expect them to be self-motivated, self-taught, and committed individually to evangelize and reach out to their community. Could not the same rightly be said of all of us? Therefore, we train, instill a vision for the local church, and provide opportunities to put their training to use.
A Cyclical Cycle
This is the beauty of church-based campus ministry. The local church equips her members (of all ages) to go out and evangelize and invite people to church services. Visitors hear the gospel, and, as the Lord should bless, they are saved, baptized, and added to the church. Then, in turn, they are equipped to engage people on a spiritual level … and the cycle repeats itself.
Humble Expectations
The Reformed Presbyterian Church of Lafayette has not seen dramatic numbers of converts or scores of unchurched, college-aged people pouring through our doors. But we have seen consistent ministry to people who do not know Jesus and desire to be introduced to Him. These contacts would not have been possible without our Christian college students being nurtured by the local church to engage people for the Lord. With less than 0.1 percent of Purdue’s campus being involved in RP churches, we can only do so much. But we can do more than one pastor could do alone. In the way in which we are laboring for Christ, we are seeking to be faithful with whom we have been given and where the Lord has placed us. Soli Deo gloria.